First Shoes

One of the big milestones we all look forward to as parents is our little one starting to learn to walk.  However, before you rush out for those first shoes it is worth taking the time to consider what is going on in those precious feet.

The Science

Each little foot is amazing, there are 26 bones, 19 muscles, 107 ligaments plus an array of delicate blood vessels, nerves and tissue fibres all working together to control its movement. Bones start out as soft cartilage and it isn’t until the child reaches adulthood that the foot is fully developed. This means a child’s foot is very susceptible to moulding and damage and the right footwear is vital.

In fact, medical experts worldwide now agree that the less time a child spends in shoes the
 better and that we leave it as long as possible 
before putting our new walker into their first
 shoes. Barefoot walking is the very best thing for healthy foot development; however, it isn’t always practical in our cold and wet climate.

When should I buy my little one their first pair of shoes?

Children do not need shoes until they are walking confidently outside. Pram shoes and ‘pre-walkers’ should only be used for special occasions if you think it’s absolutely necessary. This would include to keep feet warm and provide some grip on slippier surfaces.

When your little one can walk confidently outside, which means being able to hold your hand for a reasonable distance, walk around unaided without falling over or starting to run, then it is time to look at their first pair of shoes. You will also find at this point that the leather soled pre-walker shoes will wear out very quickly and not be robust enough to keep up with all the activities! It is perfectly OK to keep using pre-walker options during the transition into more confident walking, and even after this point provided the fit is still good and there is sufficient durability for more challenging walks.

When they get their first shoes, they should only be worn when necessary to protect their feet and keep them warm. Even when they are wearing shoes it is essential to ensure they spend as much time barefoot as possible.

What to look for in a first pair of shoes

So when you are finally ready for those first shoes, what should you look for?

A child’s shoe should be lightweight, with a flexible sole to mimic barefoot walking. A wide toe box is important to give lots of wriggle room. The shoe should be shaped like a child’s foot which isn’t just a scaled down version of an adult’s foot but much more triangular in shape.

Recommendations

So when you are ready to buy a first pair of shoes what do we recommend?

Bobux Step Up

Bobux Step Up shoes are designed for little ones taking their first steps with a sole unit designed to reflect the distinctive anatomy of a first walker’s foot. It is a lovely thin and flexible sole unit which really softens nicely with use as well. They are the narrowest of our First Shoe options and suitable for narrow and narrow to medium width feet. We also really like the Bobux Xplorer as a first shoe, even though it is designated as a pre-walker it has a great rubber sole for outside use and functions well as a good option until they are really confident.

Old Soles

The Old Soles range of pre-walkers and first shoes come a little wider than the Bobux Step Up and encompass the lovely sandals and the hard wearing Pave range. All are on a thin and flexible sole unit with nice anatomical toe boxes designed for little feet.

Poco Nido

A wider and thinner sole unit Poco Nido are designed with barefoot principles to be beautifully foot shaped, with a thin and flexible TPU rubber sole suitable for outdoor adventures. Their range of shoes comprises lovely colours and imaginative prints to make first shoes fun and creative.

Camper First Peu

Common Tread

Finally

Even when they have shoes encourage your child to be barefoot as much as possible. Children instinctively and naturally want to be barefoot ‐ how many of us have despaired over the discarded socks through the house or shoes lost when thrown out of the pushchair? So whenever the ground is safe enough let them roam as nature intended and celebrate their barefoot instincts!